The present invention relates to an improved lever device for clamps of a garment-hanger.
Garment-hangers of the so called type xe2x80x9cwith clampsxe2x80x9d are already known and they include a rod with a hook and with two freely placed clamps in order to hold the hung cloth. Both of these two clamps include a couple of lever devices of the first order, pivoted on the rod and reciprocally joined and pre-loaded one against the other, in close configuration, by means of a pre-loaded xe2x80x9cUxe2x80x9d spring. Each lever device includes a first portion pressing on the fabric of the hung cloth (in opposition to the corresponding first portion of the other lever device of the pliers) and a second portion, on which the user""s fingers act, during the opening of the clamp, acting against the spring power. On the inside of the first portion the surface pressing directly on the hung garment has special anti-slip features, in order to sustain the hold on the fabric.
At the present state of the art, different constructional solutions are known to be suitable for this purpose, comprising the application of a layer of soft rubber by molding or the use of removable tags embedded in the body of the lever device. All the known solutions have the drawback that they need complicated machines to realize the molding of the rubber on the lever device or to manufacture the tag, which, later, has to be placed on said element, which increases the final cost, which should be as low as possible, if we consider the kind of product.
An object of the present invention is to realize a completely automatic and inexpensive process to cover the inside part, that which is in touch with the fabric, of the lever device of a garment-hanger.
This object is achieved by providing strips of soft material, originally wound in a coil, which are at first placed, by means of a steady step movement, above the surface to be covered and, then, cut in sections, which are then joined to the surface below.
A first feature of the present invention is represented by the use of soft plastic materials such as, for example, polyurethane, neoprene, polyethylene and similar materials, which are not expensive and, up to now, have been used only to cover the rod and/or the ends of the arch structure of the rod garment-hangers. Velvet material can also be used.
A further feature of the present invention is represented by the fact that the welding of the strip sections on the surface of the lever device is achieved by means of a welding head, which carries out a linear welding connected only with the borders of said section, in such a way that part of the section, which is inside the welding cord, remains sufficiently soft, so as to raise the xe2x80x9cspongexe2x80x9d effect, which is typical of the material used.
A further feature of the present invention is represented by the fact that the welding, carried out by means of a welding resistance or laser head, is of the type called xe2x80x9cin hot inclusionxe2x80x9d, which realizes only the fusion of the plastic support, represented by the lever device incorporating the material of the strip, which, with a higher melting-point, remains integral.